Kez vs Lifestealer

How this matchup plays

Trying to outplay a Lifestealer as Kez is a losing battle. The core of Kez's dueling kit—his parries, his counters, the spell effects tied to his stances—are completely ignored by Rage. Lifestealer can simply activate his magic immunity and walk straight through Kez's entire setup. What should be a skillful duel becomes a raw damage race. In that kind of fight, Lifestealer's innate lifesteal from Feast lets him sustain through whatever physical damage Kez can output, while Kez has no answer to the onslaught.

This dynamic shapes the whole game. Once Lifestealer gets a few items, Kez can no longer exist in a side lane or walk around the map alone. Lifestealer will actively hunt him, and Kez's only option is to run. He is forced to wait out the Rage duration from a safe distance, which gives Lifestealer free rein to attack him or his teammates. For Kez to have an impact, his team must provide all the control needed to kite the Lifestealer, because he can't contribute much himself until that magic immunity wears off.